Unlocking Sales Growth with Data: Insights from Norma Arbulu from Lahlouh on Leveraging commonsku

We were thrilled to have Norma Arbulu, the Brand Experience Manager at Lahlouh, Inc., to join us for a webinar and delve into her unique role and how she leverages commonsku to drive team sales and enhance client experiences. 
Lahlouh, a company of 250 employees, has an incredible promo division. In addition to their extensive experience with large format printing, direct mail, packaging and design, fulfillment, and online shops, they also have a powerful client-growth model. At the center of this model is Norma Arbulu. Norma is a Brand Experience Manager within the promo division whose broad industry experience and expertise is used to grow key accounts by collaborating with account executives and project managers to guide daily product decisions. Combining her sourcing skills and product expertise, Norma's primary objective is to identify and leverage growth opportunities within existing business and in our recent webinar, we chatted with Norma about how she uses data in commonsku to amp sales growth, delight clients, and advise colleagues.
Here are the highlights!

What’s a “day in the life” of a brand experience manager?

Norma explained that while she still manages some of her own clients, a significant portion of her day involves supporting the broader team. She focuses on proactively identifying opportunities, refining presentation strategies, and ensuring they are meeting client objectives. Unlike account executives who are often managing day-to-day projects and putting out fires, Norma operates in a more strategic, hovering role, providing guidance and coaching to the sales team. Her background in merchandising and her passion for creative work are invaluable in this role, allowing her to contribute to various clients.

How do you use commonsku’s newsfeed for sales growth?

One of the most interesting aspects of our conversation was how Norma utilizes the commonsku newsfeed. She jokingly refers to herself as a "newsfeed stalker". This isn't casual browsing; it's a strategic practice to identify emerging client needs and industry trends. For example, seeing multiple mentions of "intern swag" in the newsfeed prompted her to proactively develop an intern-specific shop for the team to share with clients. She also monitors the newsfeed for large estimates, allowing her to check in with the team and offer support for impactful presentations. For managers, the newsfeed provides a valuable overview of ongoing projects, even those not explicitly discussed in one-on-ones. Furthermore, Norma actively engages with the community feed to uncover unique client requests and learn about new vendors, showcasing her proactive approach to staying ahead of the curve.

Streamlining client interactions with commonsku’s portals

Norma is a strong advocate for utilizing commonsku portals to simplify processes for both the team and their clients. She emphasizes that every project automatically has a portal, even if clients aren't actively using all its features. Her strategy involves consistently directing clients to the portal for essential actions like proof approvals and tracking information. This approach is particularly beneficial for their tech and pharma clients in the Bay Area who often need to self-manage and provide quick updates to their own teams. By empowering clients with self-service tools, it reduces the back-and-forth communication and aligns with the "Amazon experience" that many clients now expect. Norma introduces portals to new clients right from the start, establishing it as the standard way of doing business.

Leveraging commonsku collections for efficiency and inspiration

Collections are another favorite commonsku tool for Norma. She uses them to quickly find products, add variety to client presentations, and accelerate the sales cycle. Instead of starting from scratch, she often builds upon her "stack of ready to go stuff" and then uses collections to add both fun and more conservative options to cater to different client preferences. Collections are also invaluable when dealing with unusual client requests, allowing the team to easily search and find relevant product ideas. Norma encourages new sales team members to explore collections first before seeking broader team input, promoting a "work smarter" approach. She also offered valuable feedback for suppliers, urging them to use compelling product photos within the collections to make their offerings stand out.

The importance the production report in commonsku

Norma stressed the significance of salespeople regularly checking the production report. While production might be handled by a separate team, she believes that the ultimate responsibility for client satisfaction lies with the salesperson. A quick review of the production report allows them to proactively identify potential issues, keep clients informed, and ensure projects are on track. It also provides insights into workload distribution within the production team, potentially flagging situations where support might be needed.

Thanks Norma for joining us to talk about your role as a Brand Experience Manager and how commonsku helps you leverage data for sales growth!